PITTSBURGH – The No. 4 Pitt volleyball team (0-0, 0-0 ACC) opens the season in Eugene, Ore. to play the No. 10 Ducks (0-0, 0-0 Big Ten) on Friday night at 10:30 p.m. ET, before taking on Long Beach State (0-0, 0-0 Big West) in Matthew Knight Arena on Saturday at 7 p.m. ET.
The Ducks and Panthers are 2-2 in the overall series. Most recently, Pitt lost a close five set match against Oregon at the Fitzgerald Field House last September. Torrey Stafford and Olivia Babcock had 16 kills each, while Rachel Fairbanks nearly eclipsed a double-double with 29 assists and nine digs.
Pitt looks to win its first match against Long Beach State as it holds a 6-0 advantage in the series. The two programs have not played since 2007 when The Beach won in a tightly contested five set match in Long Beach.
FRESH FACES
• The Panthers welcome five true freshmen in Ryla Jones, Bianca Garibaldi, Kiana Dinn, Mallorie Meyer and Dalia Vîrlan.
• Jones and Garibaldi joined the team in January, Dinn and Meyer arrived in Pittsburgh this summer, and Vîrlan came right before preseason.
• Garibaldi hails from Argentina, Vîrlan is from Romania while Jones (Washington, D.C.), Meyer (Nebraska) and Dinn (Kentucky) come to Pittsburgh from the States.
• Pitt also recently signed senior transfer setter, Nisa Buzlutepe, from Istanbul, Turkey.
• She has one year of eligibility remaining after playing three seasons at Texas A&M.
AN EXPERIENCED BUNCH
• Ten Panthers return from the 2023 Final Four Team, including five All-Americans.
• Rachel Fairbanks, Olivia Babcock, Torrey Stafford, Emmy Klika and Valeria Vazquez Gomez all have notched All-American, All-ACC and All-Region awards in their careers.
PANTHERS ARE HOT
• Pitt is coming off three straight Final Fours, back-to-back ACC Championships and eight consecutive NCAA Tournament appearances.
• The Panthers are the only team in the last three years to appear in the 2021, 2022 and 2023 Final Fours and one of three to compete in the last four Elite Eights.
PITT IN RED, WHITE AND BLUE
• Olivia Babcock and Blaire Bayless competed with Team USA once again this summer.
• Babcock played with the Senior National Team in Anaheim, Calif., the only rising sophomore in NCAA…
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